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Saturday, January 3, 2015

Five Years and a Day #edchat

It's been five years and a day since my first blog post. It's hard to wrap my brain around the little blog that could. It's gone through ups and downs and I have always been able to go there and empty my brain when I needed. I think there are a few things I've learned about blogging these past five years.

1. Blogging is a connection - My main idea behind blogging was to simply share what I was thinking. Sometimes that was focused on a tool, a lesson, or even an Ed policy. No matter what it was, I was able to go to my site and share my thoughts. Through sharing, connections were made. I've met some amazing people that have inspired me and supported my silliness. I've always made sure to credit Kelly Tenkely and Shelly Terrell for being some of the first people to support my blogging. They read and tweeted my work and gave me the confidence to keep going. For me, writing on my blog is to keep those connections going and create new ones.

2. Blogging is a voice - Blogging has given so many people a voice in the education discussion. I do not agree with all of the voices out there, but all voices have a chance to be heard because of blogs. My voice tends to be comical/satirical of various situations. Some people actually find me funny. It's a fact that confuses my wife. :-P

No matter the topic of the blog, everyone has a chance to be heard in the conversation if they take the time to share their thoughts. Not every blog post will be read, but there is always a chance that your thought/comment on an issue could be the one that sparks change. That is an awesome power to have in a little blog post. Keep writing and we can change the world.

3. Blogging is a chance... - ...to do anything, to go anywhere, etc. My blog has taken me all over the country. I've had an opportunity to work with amazing people. I've become a Google Certified Teacher and Evernote Education Ambassador. I've worked with YouTube and I write for George Lucas (I write a month post for Edutopia which is a George Lucas Nonprofit company, but I like telling it the other way). I've spoken to teachers around the country and I've won the MACUL and ISTE Teacher of the Year Awards. I never set out to do anything of these things.

Writing on my site always started out as a place to share some thoughts. I didn't realize it was a chance to do more until much later in the blog's life. When you put yourself out there, anything can happen. People have asked how they can do the same things I've done, and I always tell them to just be themselves and put it out there. If people like what you are doing, they will reach out. Blogging can be a chance to do anything. It can start with a simple post. Trust me.

Five Years and a Day seems crazy to me. I still have posts in my head and things to say. When I don't, I'll know it is time to retire the site and explore the next thing I'm super passionate about. See you in the next post.